Re-Melanie

Great piece on Melanie. 
 
I interviewed her for my  podcast just last week, so it was probably her final one.

Melanie was very gracious and told some fantastic stories that I don't think people know about her. 

First, her husband/manager/producer, whose office was across the hall from Michael Lang's, asked if Melanie would play a garden party that they were planning for next summer. This was July of 1968. She agreed and thought nothing of it until late spring 0f 1969. So, she was actually the first artist to be booked for Woodstock. As it got closer to the date in 1969, she realized this was no garden party. She followed Sly and the Family Stone, who, just before they played their final song, passed out candles to the audience and asked that everyone light them. Out came Melanie, who hadn't played for more than a couple of hundred people in the clubs of NYC. She looked out across the concert site and saw thousands of people holding candles. She went on from her appearance to become an international star. When she got home later that year, she was moved to write a song about her experience. She wrote the song, "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)", and got the Edward Hawkins Singers who were recording in the studio next door to sing backup. They nailed it in one take. 

Next came " Look What They Done To My Song, Ma" and then she left Buddha Records to start her own label, Neighborhood  Records (distributed by Paramount.)  She then released a single that went to number one around the world, "Brand New Key." As you correctly pointed out, she was really becoming a superstar. But it killed her career. 
 
At the time of her death, she was just about to be back in the spotlight. She had been asked to sing a song for a tribute  album for the late Pete Ham. She chose the classic, "Without You" which Ham wrote. It had been a big hit for Harry Nilsson, Mariah Carey, and others.
 
She truly was a star and I miss her…
 
Denny Somach

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She was our next-door neighbor until about a year or two ago, when she moved away. She and her son Beau had us over for dinner a few times, or we'd go out to eat. I hung out a lot with Beau - he's a helluva musician with *killer* chops - and helped him sometimes with recording tech issues. Melanie and I also had a mutual connection, Ron Frangipane. He had produced her and Mandrake's third album, "Puzzle." FWIW she was the first female artist to have three records in the top 40 at the same time ("Brand New Key" and the next two follow-up singles). That was a big deal in those days. 

Melanie was a sweet lady. We were at her place one night and she played a new song she was working on, I don't remember if the title was finalized but I think it was "Ruins." To paraphrase, it was about being a ruin yet persisting. She was always looking to the next project, she didn't stop. 

BTW she got very little financial benefit (as in virtually none, from what I could tell) from her hits. She didn't talk about it much, and I didn't press for details. 

I really can't tell you too many stories about the celebrity part of her life, we always just related to her as Melanie, the neighbor who was also part of the music biz. She didn't need us to be fans, she had plenty of fans. She didn't have any airs about her. She sure looked comfortable in her own skin.

Rest in peace Melanie, but preferably peace includes a home recording studio for you.

Craig Anderton

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Thanks for writing your excellent piece on Melanie. I was fortunate to spend a few hundred hours in the studio engineering for her. We did a very unique double album, live (in the studio with a live audience) in 1977 or '78, called Ballroom Streets. 

We started another record a couple years later with the Bee Gee's rhythm section backing her, but I don't think it was ever finished or released. Hopefully, her kids have Mel's cover of Lay Down Sally in their archives.  

Each night, we had an audience of 30 people from the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area sit on the floor in the live room (Triiad Recording Studios, Ft. Lauderdale) while Melanie and her band (usually about 6 or 7 musicians) played the entire set list from beginning-to-end, LIVE. 

Melanie and her husband/manager/producer Peter Schekeryk wanted to capture her live "vibe," but with studio quality sound.

After many nights of doing the same "show," over and over, I edited the 2", 24-track tape of the best takes/performances/minutes/sections into what became the double album, released on Tomato Records. There were virtually no overdubs, and all but one of Melanie's vocals on that record were the live vocals she sang with fans sitting at her feet, clapping along. No Autotune, vocal punch-ins, or comps! 

It was an engineering and production challenge I relished, to say the least. Live monitors for the audience out in the room, wedges for band members to hear themselves, and no click track. Real musicians playing real music, warts and all. 

Did the weed-smoking, wine/beer-drinking audience members scattered around the studio's floor clap out of time into some of the microphones? Definitely!! And somehow it all worked out incredibly well. 

Because of the skinny budget, each song was mixed in only 1 or 2 hours. Unheard of these days. Unheard of even back then! No automation, no plugins, and only 24 tracks. The mixes were almost as live as the recordings. I doubt that many engineers or producers today will ever get to enjoy that experience or challenge. My training with legends like Tom Dowd, Karl Richardson, and Don Gehman at Criteria Studios in Miami gave me the skills needed to pull it off, and I remain grateful for that to this day.

Am I telling you this to brag? No, I'm doing it underscore Melanie's (sometimes underestimated) chops as an artist. She was authentic and original in every way. BTW, most people knew her as a folkie, but she could rock out with the best of them. Check out the end of Beautiful Sadness: https://twtr.to/8WZrP from Ballroom Streets.

It's sad that we've lost her, but her music will live on as her legacy. There was so much more to Melanie than Brand New Key. Hopefully, your readers will do a deeper dive so they can hear what music sounded like when an artist's performance mattered more than perfection. 

Warm regards,
Michael Laskow

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Thank you for recognizing Melanie and the huge impact she had during that brief but magical time. Like you, I also first became aware of Melanie when our local FM station started playing "Beautiful People." I was only 15 but I was drawn in by her unique voice and the positive message of the lyrics. 

A few months later, I heard "Candles in the Rain" and immediately went out and bought the album. Thus began my lifelong love affair with Melanie's music. I soon bought her two earlier albums, "Melanie," "Born to Be," and the wonderful live album, "Leftover Wine." Most enlightened music lovers were listening to Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Tim Buckley and others at the time but for me, it was Melanie who connected with me more than any other singer-songwriter. Her next 3 albums, "The Good Book," "Gather Me," and "Stoneground Words" showed a growing maturity in her songwriting and voice but like you said, she was unable to sustain the momentum from the previous few years. My tastes in music evolved over the years but my affection for those early albums, never waned.

Melanie continued to release albums over the next two decades, some better than others and I would still buy them, hoping to recapture that magical connection from my youth. Thanks to YouTube, Melanie continues to reach legions of new fans. 

Fast forward to 2022 and by some stroke of luck and good timing, I was introduced to Melanie by a long time friend, who mentioned to her that I was interested in having her record a song for a Pete Ham tribute album that I was working on. Much to my delight and amazement, she was very excited to be a part of it and her version of "Without You" is a major highlight on the album.  I could not believe it but I was working with one of my musical heroes and I soon became fast friends with Melanie and her wonderful son, Beau Jarred. This led to another release on our label, a 51 year old live radio broadcast from a Miami station (called "The Magic Bus") that was digitized and restored by Beau. 

Working directly with Melanie these past 2 years has been the highlight of my career and getting the call about her passing has broken my heart into pieces. My thoughts are with Melanie's wonderful children, Beau Jarred, Leilah, Jordie and her beautiful grandchildren. My memories of her will be with me as long as I live. 

Rich Ulloa
Y&T Music

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Wow. Spot on. You're the second person who ever articulated this about "brand new key" to me. The first one was my neighbor and friend Harry Chapin, back in Huntington Long island. 

Happy circumstance, i got to be part of one of Harry's songwriting workshops that he did all the time for free, then I became friendly with him and he told me a million stories and he dragged me around to Gigs—and it was really really fun. He became famous about the time the Melanie did. They did some gigs together and he talked about her once in a while. I'm not sure about your 1971 date. I thought it was A couple of years later than that. Whatever.

(Harry was an amazing guy, kind of insane but smart as a whip and had more energy than any six people I ever met. He liked to talk about the business and he had LOTS Of opinions. I loved hearing them, he was usually right. And his stories and named dropping were unparalleled.

I do remember him saying that because they were career contemporaries, he felt that the most egregious mistake Melanie ever made was releasing "brand new key." He said it was a bullsh*t bubble gum song that totally worked against her entire image, disappointed her fans, confused everyone about who she was and what she did, and pretty much trashed her career. (Just like you said in your post.) I recall he told me that about 1975. 

She was a bigger star, but Harry was true to what he did, and his fans adored him, and he put on the most wonderful live shows. I was always amazed that he could make chicken salad out of chickensh*t no matter where he was or what he did. I still miss him. He put out some clunky songs too, but nothing ans awful as "brand new key." Lol

Rik Shafer

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For a short window of time, our agency Blue Raven Entertainment represented Melanie and booked her shows exclusively.  She was a very unique person like so many of the talented.  Interestingly, we had her booked on the ill fated Woodstock 50.  Michael Lang paid Melanie in full and in the end, she was able to keep that which was meaningful to her at the time.  Alas, the Woodstock era comes to a close.  She was a sweet, gentle soul and we enjoyed our association with her.  

Rachel Hill

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I never let my lack of love for "Brand New Key" affect my ardor for "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)". It's one of THE records. Great writing, great performing, great production. Some may chafe at her voice, but the power, the passion, is indisputable. And she WAS weird, fey. But to be herself so completely, without care for modern concerns like "image", was a beautiful thing, something to love her for. We were hippies, for Christ's sake, being who you were without caring what others thought -- the lame OR the hip -- was the ideal. Probably why I shrugged off "Brand New Key". So she wants to be silly this time: let her. God knows her early stuff had enough angst and open wounds to tide us through the goofy grins.

I revere her work and mourn her loss.

Berton Averre

P.S. "Close to It All": https://twtr.to/tPtd_

Sincere/Confessional/Philosophical has over the years become pretty dreary. But if we apply the positive aspects people tout -- "It's clearly coming from the heart", "You can tell she's singing about her life" -- well I'd put this odd sprite up against the blatant babes. The difference being Melanie Safka could whisper her screed, pull you in. And then take it to the height of pain, or fear. 

Not many Melanies in our world. And isn't that a pity?

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A funny Melanie story. I was at Woodstock with my Jewish summer camp, Camp; Willoway, when I was 13. I was probably the only person there in chinos with a button down shirt studying my Haftarah.  We had tickets for all three days, but after the concert reached the news parents made us leave Saturday morning. We ended up on the back cover of the Life Magazine special and the centerfold also…just our backs. 

Meanwhile, we slogged through folk night, which was fairly terrible to a kid who only knew a few rock acts on the bill and wanted to see the Who, Jimi, the Airplane….and Arlo Guthrie and Joan Baez. 

If memory serves, it was like 2 a.m. when Melanie came on and Arlo and Joan were scheduled next. But more rain was coming and Melanie seemed interminable. 

The rain picked up and I kept wishing Melanie would end so I could see the two artists I knew that night. 

But then there was a long rain break and I missed them, falling asleep and cursing Melanie the whole time. 

Anyway, I came to appreciate her later and always laugh at how much I hated her that night. 

PS: No one talks about the guru who rambled on for I think 40 minutes Friday night. He didn't make the movie either. He was total pain for me also. 

Peace and Love
brad kava

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Wow.    Some of your best words.

"Candles.."(on repeat/ long version) was one of my early experiences with good heavy headphones.   And it was today that I learned that it was the beloved Edwin Hawkins choir in the hauntingly beautiful BGVs. 
The short version? I loved it too when it flowed out of the AM radio in my 64 Plymouth Valiant. I'd never leave the car until it was finished and faded with my head full of wonder and pulse rate a bit higher.

The time we have is somehow both long and oddly brief.  These tracks, these artists ( breathing or not) are our communal stepping stones across the turbulent water.... till death do us part.  

From your Melanie piece,  I have all of your aforementioned singles.  Heck, thanks to streaming we all do. Unlike you, I count "Brand New Key" as a plus but I so get your point.

I'm gonna miss Melanie like I miss Mary Travers and Laura Nyro....the long-dressed poetic hippie-chicks with style, talent and swagger-ish attitude.  

But with all our clocks ticking, I'm going to focus not of missing things but making things.  Like Buffett told us, we're just living and dying in 3/4 time.

Much Peace,

Skip Bishop

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Been listening to Melanie while I read your email. She had a great voice and a couple of hits. But back in the 70s was she on mine or my friends radar, I'd have to say no. I was 12 in 69 so Woodstock was not much of a concern to us and I really hadn't got into "music" yet. That happened a few years later when my older brother bought a stereo and Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, David Bowie, Average White Band, Gordon Lightfoot and many other artists entered my consciousness. We listened to that stereo constantly. 

As we got a bit older and had parties at Mom's house, there was one constant at every party and I'm not sure why, it was Bob Dylan-Blood on the Tracks and dope, lol!!

It's sad Bob that all these champions of our musical past like Melanie are passing. David Bowie was a tough one, my one serious regret was not seeing Bowie in Toronto when I had a chance. I've seen Dylan 9 times but when he passes that is going to be a tough one. 

I'm 66 Bob still working and like you I think that one day it'll be my turn. I try to enjoy myself as much as I can but it's tough. 

I've lost two brothers, a sister and her husband in the last few years. Three of my sisters have Alzheimer's. 

I never thought it would happen like it has. I am the least healthy, my brother and sister were very health conscious, yet they are gone and I'm still here.

Anyway Bob I hope you stick around for a very long time as I enjoy your emails and will sorely miss you if you were gone. 

Doug Gillis

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Thanks Bob,lot of memories.I wish I couldn't remember Brand New Key,but now I have that earworm.Stay well,Ted Keane

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Great job describing that point in time from FM vs AM, to the Woodstock movie to Melanie. Only problem is now I have Brand New Key as an Earworm! 

Lyndon Virkler

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Melanie, another voice I hadn't heard, just added two of her songs to my spotify list, thanks Bob.

Jeff Watz

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Her hip period was overshadowed by the true stars of Woodstock and I could never go back once Brand New Key came out.  How do you screw it up.  It was too awful to get past. 

John Brodey

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I went to see Melanie 10 years ago in NYC at a small venue called The Cutting Room. She was pretty good! She was accompanied by her very talented son on guitar.Made me want to keep writing my little songs for fun.

Russ Turk

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Candles in the Rain on WNEW-FM.   I bought that album when I couldn't afford to buy albums, and listened to it end to end.    Everything that seemed right about hippie folk 60's music was right there for me in my tween mind.   And the songs held up for a lifetime, they hold up now.   Look what she did with her songs.

Michael Alex

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I felt the same way - when I saw the news about Melanie it hit me hard: different from Jimmy and Tom.  She was part of the family, a member of the tribe.  When I was stationed at Fort Campbell in Kentucky in 1969, hers was one of the albums that was in constant rotation in our barracks's room; the others  were Its a Beautiful Day, Zeppelin II, Fever Tree and Steppenwolf.  But Melanie carried the flag, her spirit buoyed us up and held us together through those dark days.  Her voice and passion made us feel like we were part of something special, that we could carry on through all the bullsh*t.  I often feel lately that all our heroes are dying, that our known world is coming to an end.  I'm glad that there are still those like yourself that resonate with that, and carry that essence on.  Keep it up. 

Marty Jorgensen
Spirit of 66

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In Joe Boyd's book "White Bicycles," he tells the story of how Melanie came to play that night at Woodstock. The Incredible String Band was slated to go on that evening, but it was raining. The band was skittish about playing in the rain. Maybe they were afraid of being electrocuted or damaging their unique acoustic instruments. And they had plenty of them.) 
 
So Melanie, who was going to play in the morning, took the evening slot, played in the rain and was a huge hit. The Incredible String Band played the next morning to a tired, srung out, mud caked audience. And their performance went nowhere.
 
Timing is everything . ..

Mitchell Manasse

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Don't know if you've heard her song 'Johnny Boy' but it's worth a listen if you haven't. It's on Youtube.

Greg Stroh

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I HATE THAT SONG!!!!!  NEEDLESCRATCH!!!  SO moronic.

Aly Etchison

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I am apparently feeling quite like you, or at least what you wrote. "Brand New Key" was the breaking point for me, but from my perspective at the time Melanie was a "Jersey Girl" and should have known better! 

Hope you are well.

Best,

Mike Marrone

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A funny Melanie story. I was at Woodstock with my Jewish summer camp, Camp; Willoway, when I was 13. I was probably the only person there in chinos with a button down shirt studying my Haftarah.  We had tickets for all three days, but after the concert reached the news parents made us leave Saturday morning. We ended up on the back cover of the Life Magazine special and the centerfold also…just our backs. 

Meanwhile, we slogged through folk night, which was fairly terrible to a kid who only knew a few rock acts on the bill and wanted to see the Who, Jimi, the Airplane….and Arlo Guthrie and Joan Baez. 

If memory serves, it was like 2 a.m. when Melanie came on and Arlo and Joan were scheduled next. But more rain was coming and Melanie seemed interminable. 

The rain picked up and I kept wishing Melanie would end so I could see the two artists I knew that night. 

But then there was a long rain break and I missed them, falling asleep and cursing Melanie the whole time. 

Anyway, I came to appreciate her later and always laugh at how much I hated her that night. 

PS: No one talks about the guru who rambled on for I think 40 minutes Friday night. He didn't make the movie either. He was total pain for me also. 

Peace and Love
brad kava

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I'm only 56 but I get it.  It is weird.
Melanie was actively working on a new album.  76 is not that old.
When Christine McVie died, I was crushed.  But when I learned yesterday Melanie died, I was devastated. I never met her or even saw her live, but she seemed like she could be my second mom.
Her songs were odd, but fun and clever.  Your take on Brand New Key is fascinating and helps to explain why her albums wind up in the dollar bin today.  However, I still see lots of the post-Brand New Key albums come in, so someone was buying those when they came out.  Strange to me, as she didn't really have any more hits.

If you haven't seen this live video of Candles in the Rain from Dutch television, stop what you're doing and watch it.  When I found it a couple of years ago, it floored me, it's so outstanding.  And it reminded me of a song I hadn't heard or thought of probably since I was in Catholic grade school in 1972.  Unearthing those memories is a trip.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZ52lk9wjZI

Thanks for the piece.

catmonster

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I wasn't there at the time, but Melanie's "Steppin'" came out after Rollerskates and that's a real mother. She's got some other killers on that run of early 70s albums. Maybe consider poking around with fresh ears. Probably won't change your take, but might give a few new tunes to enjoy.

Best wishes,
Pat Myers

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Funny thing about Brand New Key for me. I was 4 years old when it came out, so of course I heard it regularly throughout my early years. But there was a parody version that came out later called "Combine Harvester" and the local radio station would play it. Consequently, a local John Deere dealership re-recorded that version for a radio spot that got played all the time, trying to sell combine harvesters to the area farmers. So I always associate that song with combine harvesters, not roller skates. Haha!

I found the the video for Combine Harvester on YouTube: https://twtr.to/9uTEv

Dave Nelson

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That hits the nail right on my head.
That stupid roller skate song , back when we  could punch the preset button on your car radio with a disdainful flourish , quickly finding a better listen . 
Is 67 old? Or just almost? I am that guy.
Gerry Lauderdale
Boston

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When i was 11, I had an acoustic guitar and played "Lay Down" in my open classroom and my teacher called my Mom saying the subject matter was "inappropriate".   As an 11 year old then, I had no idea what the song referred to lyrically, but loved Melanie's voice and her melodies, hence covering her songs then and later on.  To me, she was fabulous and whatever the industry did or did not do for her, I have her records!!!  RIP beautifully talented Melanie!!!!
I would not have known Melanie if it wasn't for "Brand New Key" and as a kid, I delved in deeper. 
Something I hold dear to my heart....
"Someday I got  devil
Someday  i got angel
But I'm just this girl in trouble
I don't think I'm in danger
No I'm not in danger
Some have tried to sell me
All kinds of things to save me from
Hurting like a woman
And crying like a baby"

Diane Gentile

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I fell in love with Melanie's unique voice before her Woodstock fame after hearing her version of "Mr Tambourine Man" on her first album; like you it was during my college radio days. Since then, I have enjoyed a career in radio and about seven or eight years ago I got the chance to interview Melanie and found her to be nicely balanced, no pretension; she was still touring at the time, was doing music with Miley Cyrus but when she assessed her life she said was most proud of her kids and said her best times were spent with grandchildren. It was a sweet interview with a happy person. 

Mike Fiss
The Villages, Florida

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We die…and if we're lucky, we become a picture on a piano. 

Damn!

I really liked Brand New Key.  It was emblematic of that time. 

Best,

Will Eggleston 

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I'm not sure I completely understand why, but Melanie's death hit me hard.  I was always a fan; hell, I even contorted myself into forgiving "Brand New Key."  I've spent the past couple days listening and remembering.  So, of course, a lot of that first listening happened at Middlebury; I practically wore out the grooves of Photograph, often replacing the needle to re-listen to her cover of "The Letter."  

I kept attaching visuals of Midd to your recollections.  My freshman dorm was Battell South, soon to be demolished ... sigh.  The buildings -- and we -- are temporary.

Best,

John Hyman

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I closed my music career working at a small label based in Miami....Pyramid Records....it was 2000 or 2001.... we had some good records and I still think we had the best Doobie Brothers album. Anyway......Pyramid was thinking about signing Melanie. I immediately did what you described.  "Uh-oh", I thought. " she did 'brand new key'....that's going to be a tough sell"...but I listened to the demo and it was very good and then she stopped by the office. Sweet and kind., she converted me on the spot. We ended up passing but, when I read she passed, I thought of meeting her and the album we didn't release.....no thoughts of " brand new key".   RIP.

Louis Heidelmeier 

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FROM: Mr. DaiWoosnam, Grimsby, UK.

Bob, I salute you for that piece on Melanie Safka.   Not only was it written in your trademark staccato Hemingwayesque style where every word pays its rent in your sentences, but I loved the way that you extended your piece beyond the subject of Melanie, to cover the subject of 'time passing'… and how time accelerates and ends up cheating us all.   (Something I feel even more strongly than you, being six years your senior.)

Before signing off, a personal memory of Melanie.    The year is 1970.   I am at a music festival on The Isle of Wight (off the south coast of England).  Earlier that year, I had packed in my job as a lighthouse keeper on The Needles Lighthouse, about a mile from where the festival was being held.   

I thought of my fellow keepers, as they just must have been hearing the massively amplified sounds on the late August breeze.  I mused on what they would make of 500,000 of what they'd call 'hippies' grooving to the music.   There were more music pilgrims there than were at Woodstock the previous year.   Indeed, that attendance has never been equalled for a festival here in Britain.   The much vaunted Glastonbury doesn't even get close.

But do you know something Bob?  In a deliberate attempt to match the never-equalled bill at the '69 Woodstock, the 1970 Isle of Wight pulled out all the stops.   You will not have time to read the full list of artistes in appearance, so I will spare you it, suffice to say that male performers ran the gamut from Jimi Hendrix (he was to die less than a month later) to Leonard Cohen, via Richie Havens, John Sebastian, Kris Kristofferson, Donovan and Miles Davis (yes!); groups from The Who to ELP and The Doors; and female performers from Joni Mitchell (making up for the fact she had not made it to Woodstock), to the nonpareil Joan Baez… via the aforementioned Melanie.

And do you know my most indelible memory of that festival?   Even beyond the incredibly modest £3 ticket price and the unspeakable squalor of the open-air latrines?  Yes, you've guessed Bob: it was Melanie.

The whole event was overrunning like crazy.   I recall Sunday dawn was breaking as Melanie closed the Saturday night with her rendition of 'Ruby Tuesday', a bang average base-metal song which she being the alchemist she was, transformed into a GOLDEN memory.   
A memory of the first signs of dawn breaking over the beautiful island, and Melanie's glorious vibrato taking that song on the breeze to my former colleagues, the three lighthouse keepers on the Needles Rock down below.

TTFN,
Dai.

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We covered Lay Down Candles with Blondie a few times

Chris Stein

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American Nightmare

Netflix trailer: https://rb.gy/sokfq5

This is a hot new doc. It passes the RottenTomatoes test with a rating of 95/92. Anything that goes into the nineties in both the critics' and audience ratings floats my boat, is worth checking out. And it's an excellent viewing experience. For a while there, you'll be on the edge of your seat. However, I must warn you when it's over you might wonder if you just saw an extended "20/20" piece.

However, "20/20" is intentionally lowbrow and dramatic. With the music, with the emphasis on minor factors. "American Nightmare" doesn't play that way, but it is a crime exposé, and it's not like it's directed by Errol Morris.

But it's not "Tiger King." The people are not inherently sleazy, you can have compassion for them. Or not. That's what you're unsure of here, whodunit?

And your brain will be churning, especially for the first two episodes, and there are only three. That's right, "American Nightmare" is not a huge commitment, not a drawn-out streaming enterprise. The episodes are in the neighborhood of 45 minutes each, you can polish it off in an evening.

And you won't feel bad about yourself when you're done. There are some real issues involved. Which you can discuss.

That's another reason to watch "American Nightmare." It is truly a hot doc. As in many people are watching and talking about it, in a world where the only thing we seem to have in common, that we're all familiar with and have an opinion on, is Trump vs. Biden.

In other words, "American Nightmare" is a rallying point. Which we're sorely in need of in the good ole' USA. It hits major human and societal issues without pandering, so both lowbrows and highbrows can enjoy it and weigh in.

I'm not saying "American Nightmare" will engender hours of conversation, but you'll at least exchange a few words with your fellow viewers.

Furthermore, it seems to be having an impact, fomenting change.

So "American Nightmare" provides what today's music does not. It's something we can all watch and enjoy. You don't need to know history to get it. It's plunk down in the middle of culture.

And we need more of these productions.

I don't want to push you to watch it, but if you're intrigued by the above at all, you should. One thing is for sure, you'll turn it on and get hooked, soon.


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Pivotal Cuts-SiriusXM This Week

Tune in Saturday January 27th to Faction Talk, channel 103, at 4 PM East, 1 PM West.

Phone #: 844-686-5863 

Twitter: @lefsetz

If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app. Search: Lefsetz 


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Boy Swallows Universe

Netflix: https://rb.gy/e4dyc7

Last night we watched half of "Barbie."

I know, I know, I'm late to the party. But I wasn't going to the theatre to see the movie and when it finally appeared on Max...I was just never in the right mood. Generally speaking, I like my viewing experience dark. Especially at the end of the day. I don't want to be enlivened, I want more of a visceral experience, something more cerebral. But last night after bowing out on "The Kitchen" (a Netflix movie that got great critics' reviews, but a lousy audience number), which was slow and never seemed to speed up, I pulled up "Barbie."

And I had trouble staying awake. You see I had a Covid rebound. Tested positive, the whole thing. Started about a week ago. And yesterday I was so so tired. But I was enjoying the picture when I turned it off halfway through, but Felice disagreed, she didn't get it.

And then I saw Pamela Paul's piece in the "Times":

"'Barbie' Is Bad. There, I Said It."

Free link: https://t.ly/3Wtsm

And then I started to re-evaluate. Prior to viewing I was on the team that said Greta Gerwig was unfairly denied an Oscar nomination. I'm a huge fan of her work, especially in the old Mumblecore days. I mean I laughed out loud, a number of times, but was this flick appealing more to my head than my heart? In other words, did I love the points the film was making or was it a great viewing experience? If it had been better would I have made it through last night?

But prior to "Barbie," prior to "The Kitchen," we finished "Boy Swallows Universe." I was champing at the bit to watch the concluding episode, which was fifteen minutes longer than those that preceded it, but I was stunned, it was so predictable. If I'd written this before I saw it I'd be giving a rave. But now...

Well, my main criterion for visual entertainment is that it not only hold my interest, but do so to the point where my mind doesn't drift, doesn't think about things outside the film or series I am watching. And "Boy Swallows Universe" hits this note. Maybe my mind wandered a bit during the first episode, maybe I hadn't quite calmed down from my day, but after that...

What we've got here is a lower middle class (well, that's being charitable) family in suburban Australia, outside of Brisbane. And if you've been to Australia, you know it's more of a relaxed culture, one step beyond Southern California. In other words, everybody's wearing shorts, all the time. (Well, not really, but you get the point.) So the vibe of the show is different from American shows...and European shows. It's kind of like when I was staring out at the ocean in Manly. Next stop the South Pole! (Well, my geography wasn't that good, more like New Zealand). In other words, this is far far away. As that Little River Band song goes, twelve thousand miles from Las Vegas.

So ultimately "Boy Swallows Universe" is about drug dealing.

Then again, it's more of the aftermath of drug dealing.

But what you've got here is two boys who are jostled, pushed out of their already chaotic life after the authorities get involved.

And they've got an agoraphobic alcoholic father who is divorced from their mother and has ended up on the dole.

And there are a few stars, though I don't want to give anything away.

But the center of the show is Eli Bell, aged thirteen, portrayed by Felix Cameron. His performance is so real, so true, that it makes the show worth viewing all in itself.

Eli is small, and bullied. But he's intelligent, and not always sophisticated. And he's got a charming smile. And he wants to stand up for what's right, but those experienced with law enforcement advise against this course of behavior.

And now I want to tell you more, but I don't want to give anything away. I want you to be surprised. Not that all the surprises are jaw-dropping (although one certainly is), but if I tell you who's in it, some of the plot points, it'll undercut the viewing experience.

So "Boy Swallows Universe" is visceral, but at times funny. The atmosphere is sunny, but sometimes what is happening is bleak. The plot points are not always predictable, until that unfortunate final episode. The RottenTomatoes numbers are 83/87.

I love to tell you about slam dunk shows, stuff you must see, that will stick with you, that could change your life. Some of it very innovative. I can't say that "Boy Swallows Universe" is a ten on an absolute scale. But in truth, almost nobody uses an absolute scale anymore. They tell you stuff is a ten, positively great, and it's oftentimes not even a seven.

I mean if you want blue chip, watch the first two seasons of "Happy Valley." And all of "Spiral." And "A French Village." And "The Bureau." "Boy Swallows Universe" is not quite in their league, but it's miles beyond the dreck the algorithm will otherwise tell you to watch. And the stuff that is featured on the home screen that has the imprimatur of greatness until you do a bit of research.

Not that "Boy Swallows Universe" is obscure. The algorithm might actually suggest it to you.

My e-mail started to buzz, that's why I checked it out.

And now I'm passing the recommendation on to you.


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Melanie

1

There was a moment there when she was hip.

I became aware of her back in '69, with her song "Beautiful People." I can't tell you where I heard it. Possibly on AM. But probably on FM. By that time I was totally hooked. There was the progenitor in New York, WOR. And then WNEW. And WABC, with almost no commercials. And slow-talking deejays. The same people who'd been on AM were completely different on FM. Like Scott Muni. "Number one in the nation, the Scott Muni show!" That was his jingle in the drive-time slot on WABC-AM. On FM he had this deep voice... Ultimately he was known for his work on FM, but for those of us who lived through the transition...

And there was a station in New Haven. And WDRC in Hartford. And even the University of Bridgeport had an FM station, with contests. We used to call and compete.

It was a whole subculture, and Melanie was part of it. We had no idea her last name was Safka. That kind of information was not available. And I didn't know anybody who owned the album, the one with the large letters and her picture on the cover, although I saw it in the bin every time I went to the record store, which was a lot.

And then came the Woodstock movie.

That's what made everybody hip. Sure, boys grew their hair long right after the Beatles hit in '64, but you'd be surprised how many people were still square. Protesting against the Vietnam war? It was a lot, but it wasn't everybody. And when it came to the counterculture, many were afraid. It was taboo. As for drugs, hadn't Art Linklater's daughter jumped out of a window on LSD?

But one of the big stories about Woodstock was how peaceful it all was. Don't forget, this was an era of rampant assassinations. And riots. Put 400,000 people together in a field sans enough food and water and the fact that there wasn't mayhem was a huge surprise to the mainstream.

And believe me, Woodstock was on the front page of newspapers from coast to coast. But it's one thing to read about it, it's quite another to experience it. Which is what started to happen at the end of April 1970, when the movie was released. It was platformed, i.e. it didn't play everywhere all at the same time. It only showed in a few theatres, and you had to make an effort to go. Take the train into the city. Make a pilgrimage. For this multi-hour tribute to our generation. We felt powerful. Then came Kent State in May and we became disillusioned, that's when the Back to the Land movement began. But one thing's clear, love and the music sustained.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young became even bigger than they were. Ditto the Who. But the movie also injected John Sebastian's career with a shot of adrenaline. Richie Havens went from cult to top of mind everywhere. Arlo Guthrie was brought back from "Alice's Restaurant" and obscurity. And Melanie had performed at the festival, but was not in the movie. But then she released "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain."

So not only did everybody see the Woodstock movie, they bought the three record set. And converted to albums from singles. This was the turning point. Sure, there was "Sgt. Pepper' before this, but that was the Beatles. And "Sunshine of Your Love" had crossed over to AM in '68. But with the success, the imprint of the Woodstock movie, those who were on the fence, who'd been afraid to jump in, did, and started to marinate in the music, the essence of the culture.

First came "Woodstock." The Joni Mitchell song turned into a hit by the aforementioned Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, with its indelible guitar figure.

But the next big Woodstock hit was by Melanie.

"We were so close there was no room
We bled inside each other's wounds
We all had caught the same disease
And we all sang the songs of peace

So raise the candles high
'Cause if you don't we could stay black against the night
Oh, raise them higher again
And if you do we could stay dry against the rain"

There were two versions. The 7:39 album cut they played on FM, and the 3:49 single on AM.

We'd had this situation before. Most specifically with "Light My Fire." You were hip if you knew the longer version, if you heard it on FM, if you owned the album. Ditto on "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)." FM blasted the long version, made you feel like you were a member of the club when you heard the short version on AM.

Furthermore, "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" was anthemic, in the same way the Edwin Hawkins Singers' "Oh Happy Day" had been the summer before. Actually, the Edwin Hawkins Singers were the chorus on "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)."

And the song was alternately upbeat and dark. Exuberant yet contemplative. It became part of the firmament. With an imprimatur of gravitas.

2

Only months later, I went to college. The freshmen moved in early, on a Wednesday, for orientation. On each floor was a Junior Fellow, who was supposed to greet and look over you. On my floor it was Jim, who saw my record collection and started thumbing through the albums, started talking music, telling me he was a bigwig on the college radio station.

And at this point, I still had respect for my elders.

So Jim took a liking to me and insisted I come to his room to hear his stereo. And what did he play to demonstrate it? "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)."

3

And now Melanie was a star. Verging on being a superstar. She released a cover of "Ruby Tuesday" that got traction around the world. But even better was the B-side, which got FM play, the song "What Have They Done to My Song Ma." That was a pretty good number. It's not like I loved Melanie, but I had some respect for her. She wasn't Laura Nyro, or Joni Mitchell, but she wrote her own songs, I didn't judge her.

Until...

Beware of getting what you want. In 1971 Melanie released a single that went to number one around the world. Which meant we heard it incessantly, because most cars still didn't have FM radios. And if a track was that big, it was in the air. You'd hear it coming out of shops. It was around, it was everywhere. And that song was...

"Brand New Key."

"Well I've got a brand new pair of roller skates
You've got a brand new key"

Just writing those words makes me want to punch somebody in the face.

Melanie had been a deep thinker, anything but light. And now she's released this adolescent, no, strike that, kiddie song about roller skating and... I mean this was long before roller skating became hip in the latter part of the decade. We'd outgrown our childish ways. And this woman with this sing-songy number and vocal machinations was bringing us back, banging us on the head over and over again.

I HATE "Brand New Key." Then and now. If I heard it then or I hear it now I push the button, I turn it off, it's intolerable. It's not the only one, but it's right up there, one of my all time major tuneouts.

But it killed her career. FM stopped playing her. Now she was in the Top Forty world, where you lived and died by the hit. And Melanie never had another one. Now it was just the opposite. If we saw a new Melanie album in your collection not only did we wince, we judged you negatively. Yes, back in the days when we used to visit each other in our houses, before we connected virtually, we studied your record collection, and judged you for it.

And soon Melanie was in the rearview mirror. A curio compared to Led Zeppelin and the other monsters of rock. There was no news, it was almost like she'd disappeared. You might hear one of her songs on an oldies station, then again, at that point the oldies stations were playing songs from the fifties. It was like she didn't even exist.

And it's not like there was any news. Music news was scarce. And it's not like Melanie was doing anything of note, it's not like anybody cared. She was akin to the one hit wonders of the sixties.

But then, she started to reappear.

4

Melanie was fat. And there's no bigger crime against humanity in America. Frequently when a woman is outed, whatever they say, they instantly go on a diet and try to regain the form they were known for. Like Kelly McGillis.

But not Melanie. She wore these long flowing robes and never apologized. She owned who she was. And I give her credit for that. She did not apologize, she was just Melanie. And made some new music and went on the road and you had to respect her for that. Unlike so many of her peers, Melanie had grown up. And appeared that way when you saw her in the press. She wasn't airy fairy, but down to earth. She'd had children. She'd survived.

And then this week she died.

And I immediately thought of listening to "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" in Jim's room. They put me on the college station, then they squeezed me out. It was a cabal. And whereas I had a show every Saturday morning during the fall, which was hard to get up for but perfect because everybody listened, and another every other Thursday, now during the spring semester they said I could be on maybe once every other week. I did this and then gave up. Funny how I'm on the radio now and none of these people are.

But it's all grist for the mill. We're all over seventy now. Most are done. They've retired. Which is very weird. They worked hard, they've had enough, they're living off their nest egg, which they built over decades.

Not me. I ain't got no nest egg. I didn't start to make any reasonable money until recently. Forget having to work, I WANT to work. But the rest of my generation is peeling away. And it's strange.

A few of us died before our time. But most of us are still here. A little bit worse for wear, but it's not like we've got one foot in the grave. And although people love to talk about travel, and food, and of course their grandkids, which I also don't have, not wanting to get diverted from my career path, I find what they want to talk about most is music.

Yes, they go to the show. They tell you who they've seen. They wax rhapsodic about the gigs they attended in the past. They tell you gossip, as if they know these acts personally. It's like they're twenty one years old again. But now with even more available time to marinate themselves in their passion.

Some are interested in new music, but most are not.

And most of their heroes are still on the road, assuming they're not dead. And they've got the money to go see them. And they'll never tell you a show is bad. It's what they live for, who's going to denigrate their life itself?

So they're living in the past.

But the conveyor belt keeps moving.

Now people born in the twenty first century are legal to drink.

Some of the grandkids are having kids, making you a great grandperson.

But you still see yourself as young.

And then Melanie Safka dies at 76.

5

It's one thing for Christine McVie to die at 79, another for Jimmy Buffett to die at 77. Especially Jimmy, he'd built an entire empire, he'd left his mark. It's like his life was an endless victory lap. He was a cultural institution, who crossed all lines. And he lived life to the fullest. He was cut down before his time, but he'd had cancer for a while and...well, 77, that's close to 80, right?

But 76??? That's not that far away!

So when is it going to happen to my friend group?

Well, Gary Smith just died. Which is so weird, because I don't have to go that far back in my e-mail to see him corresponding totally alive.

And I knew Gary, but I didn't talk to him every day. How about my inner circle. It's only a matter of time before one of them becomes sick and is on their way out. It could even be ME!

And unlike Jimmy Buffett, I cannot say I've achieved all I want to. Not that Jimmy didn't have further desires, but like I said, he'd left his mark.

It's creepy.

And everybody is in denial.

You pass, and then we stop talking about you. Even some of the greats. Life is for the living, and you're dead. And gone.

Now "Beautiful People" was the sixties. But "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" was the seventies. I was grown, that was my decade.

But it was fifty years ago.

The eighties were MTV. But the nineties? Where did they go?

And the aughts were Napster and internet innovation. The teens were a bit less frantic and interesting but then we had Covid and everything is different now, absolutely everything. Over this four year period I got old.

Now I don't feel old, but I am closer to death. And I can see so much of society's b.s. as such.

Sure, the people running for President are older than I am, but that's no consolation. As a matter of fact, it's hard not to detach from the horse race. I'll vote, but it's so overwhelming and we feel so powerless.

But once we felt so powerful, like we could move mountains.

And what empowered us was the music and the people who made it. They were our signposts, they were our seers.

And for a moment there, Melanie was one of them.

But now she's gone too. But she had not only hits, but a family. She died before her time, but she'd achieved at least some of her goals.

The rest of us, who still want to climb the mountain, leave our mark, time is running out. Or is it? Do we act like nothing's changed, like we have all the time in the world? Or do we freak out and get down to it.

I don't know. I don't know if I'll ever know. But these passings are becoming ever more shocking. And I know at some point it will be my time. And the world will continue to spin without me.

And that's just plain weird.


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Louis Messina-This Week's Podcast

Concert promoter for Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, the Lumineers...

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/episode/louis-messina-145463906/

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/louis-messina/id1316200737?i=1000642896616

https://open.spotify.com/episode/55xrvRPrpqXtkLbZyHfVkt?si=fmTGuPwJRbinZ9zmdmT8jA

https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/7e512285-657f-4d1a-bb2d-82d7e29a095c/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-louis-messina


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Slow Coachella

"Coachella tickets went on sale on Friday, Jan. 19. And four days later, tickets for the festival's first weekend are still up for grabs —  for the first time in a decade."

"Coachella Festival sees slowest ticket sales in 10 years": https://rb.gy/h2dbwd

This is not a Coachella story, this is a music business story. It's a harbinger of what's to come. In other words, we're minting very few mass appeal stars, never mind superstars.

Don't worry about Coachella. Ticket sales are slower, but the ducats will still sell. Yet what does this mean?

For years Coachella headliners were boomer and then Gen-X favorites. Hell, it started out as an alternative music festival. And then it was boosted by the Sahara Tent/EDM scene.

But Coachella evolved. It used to be a gathering of the tribe. Of all those dedicated to music, who lived for the music, who had to make a pilgrimage to the desert to experience the latest and the greatest, to be hip. But over the years it became a rite of passage for Los Angeles teenagers. A spring awakening affair. Come on, you've seen all the hype about the stars and their outfits. What you were going to wear, the selfies you were gonna shoot, became more important than the music on stage.

Which meant that Coachella could sell out before any headliners were announced.

But now...

I've got to give Paul Tollett credit. He moved into this century, the present. He knew who his audience was. He stopped appealing to oldsters and focused the lineup on the youngsters who really came to the festival.

But those youngsters changed. Now Mr. Beast is bigger than anybody on a Coachella stage. Influencers have a tighter bond with their audience than musical acts. And everybody is a star themselves, posting. They don't need the physical environment, they've got an endless world online. This is akin to the decline of the movie business, other than event films why do you have to go to the theatre when it's a better experience at home? Even worse, now the superhero movies are stalling. I mean how many times can you repeat the same formula?

You can take a train to Glastonbury. And the English music market is more cohesive anyway. People follow music like sports, they know who is number one, and they're still minting new stars in the U.K., but most don't cross over to the U.S.

But taking a train to Coachella?

No, Coachella is a commitment, an expensive commitment, you don't go on a whim.

Which is an advantage that Lollapalooza in Chicago and Outside Lands in San Francisco have, but neither has the gravitas, the image or the gross of Coachella. That's right, Coachella is the highest grossing event IN THE WORLD!

Once again, don't worry about Coachella. They've got a ton of income streams and they'll sell all the tickets anyway, whatever is left is going to move after the first weekend starts to play, if there is any inventory left. But what is the future?

Well, nothing lasts forever. Not that I think that Coachella will die. But usually it's those involved who are the last to know before anything is over. The public mood shifts, it's nearly imperceptible, and then it is. I mean let's be clear, the Coachella experience is far from perfect. Even if you're a VIP there are a ton of people there, you're being elbowed. This is not Bottlerock, an exclusive, upscale, much smaller affair. Coachella is mass. So therefore it must have mass appeal.

But Doja Cat? Oh, she's all over the media. This is the kind of act the press likes. That streams, that makes news. Tyler, The Creator? He's been in the marketplace for years now, but he's never been ubiquitous. And as many hosannas as Lana Del Rey receives, she is not a mass appeal artist. As in her cuts are not at the top of the Spotify Top 50.

But then there's the undercard. Absolutely horrifying. Too many acts you don't know and don't care about. Usually there's a tier of stars right under the headliners, but not at Coachella this year.

Peso Pluma on Friday? A star, but definitely not the crush of this audience. And then Lil Uzi Vert, who peaked a few years back. And then Justice? And it goes downhill from there.

And on Saturday you've got Blur, which never really broke in America and doesn't appeal to the target audience of this festival, Blur skews older, like Gen-X older. And then there's Ice Spice, the flavor of the moment, and from there, Gesaffelstein?

And on Sunday there's J. Balvin. But then Jhené Aiko. Don't read beyond there, even a sixteen year old won't know most of the acts.

As for the special guest... No Doubt? How many hits did the act really have? Gwen Stefani is 54 years old. Sure, she's been on a TV game show, but look at the demo, it's old, like very old, like doesn't even go to any shows at all old!

So, watcha gonna do?

Well, all of Coachella's competitors are buying insurance. As in older acts. Whereas Coachella's lineup is more of a statement, a sign of the future.

Well the future is going to be very few superstars and a lot of thin verticals.

Of course Taylor Swift could sell out Coachella with no one else on the bill, period. But Taylor Swift had her first hit in 2006, when the target audience still had CD players.

And Pink plays stadiums. But her first hit was back in 2000, before many Coachella attendees were even born!

And Def Leppard/Motley Crue/Journey in some combination can also sell out stadiums, but those were never Coachella acts, those acts never got respect from this audience.

As for Morgan Wallen?

He's a country act. And he's playing Stagecoach, the weekend after Coachella, the poor stepsister.

But look at that lineup!

Friday you've got Eric Church. And then Jelly Roll, Elle King, Dwight Yoakam...

And on Saturday you've got Miranda Lambert, Post Malone, Willie Nelson, Leon Bridges, Ernest...

And On Sunday you've got the aforementioned Wallen along with Hardy, Bailey Zimmerman and even the Beach Boys.

As for the No Doubt slot, you've got the constantly derided yet bigger fan favorite Nickelback as well as Diplo and Wiz Khalifa! And even Guy Fieri, who reaches more people in more demos on TV than Gwen Stefani!

Yes, there's more action, more excitement in country music than hip-hop and pop. Because there's more authenticity, and there's still a controlled radio market. Expect the scene to fragment as terrestrial radio continues to fade, but unlike hard rockers, country fans stream their favorites.

That's the story of the past year, country and Latin.

But all the news is about hip-hop and pop. But where are the new stars?

Of course there's Zach Bryan, who at this point is a stadium act. But he too is really country, not a hard drive in sight, more authentic than what the pop and hip-hop acts are selling.

So just like the music industry said CDs were forever, that no one would want files, never mind streaming, these same wankers are saying we still live in a Top Forty world minting ubiquitous stars.

Well, Drake and the Weeknd could headline Coachella. But if you're looking for universal hip-hop and pop stars, new ones, its slim pickings.

Maybe the entire music ecosystem has to adjust and give the people what they want. Maybe Stagecoach is two weekends.

But one thing is for sure, those who think they're in control no longer are. They can promote these cartoons, who are akin to the superhero movies, and there's an audience for them, but it's far from everybody.

Now I became aware of this soft sales story last night. I got an e-mail about it, and then started Googling, there was only one story, the one linked to atop this screed. Ditto this morning. But now, just hours later, TMZ has gotten on the case. Ultimately just repeating the "SFGATE" story, but TMZ and its stories reach more people than the Top Forty pop and hip-hop wonders.

And now other outlets are picking it up.

So what we're going to have is a negative public perception, irrelevant of any truth. Yes, there's a trend here, but Coachella represents more than its lineup, those tickets will move.

But as we move into the future, as the classic acts retire, who is going to headline these festivals? The major labels can't even break an act, never mind a superstar. And just because someone has streams that does not mean people are dying to see them perform live. And oftentimes the owners of these online hits have no live performance skills anyway.

But will there be an adjustment? This is the same music industry that stumbled blindly into the future and was decimated until a young techie from Sweden saved it. So don't expect those in power to make any changes. They're laying people off at Universal, it's not like the fat cats are going to sacrifice any of their salary. Furthermore, the company is sitting on its catalog, which will pay dividends for decades and decades.

No, this is a fat and satisfied industry. You can build stars on the road, but recordings turn them into festival headliners. And if labels don't take risks with new kinds of music, build worthwhile acts from close to scratch... Be ready for a course correction, the winds are blowing the business off its usual path and no one even recognizes it, they won't until it affects their pocketbook, a day late and a dollar short, as per usual.


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The Cidny Bullens Book

"TransElectric: My Life as a Cosmic Rock Star": https://rb.gy/s679py

You might not know who Cidny Bullens is, but you should read his book.

Yet if you were a rock aficionado back in the seventies, and devoured all the information you could lay your hands on, of course you know who Cindy Bullens is, she's the backup singer who toured with Elton John and was going to break big with her powerhouse rock vocals.

But she didn't.

Mary Weiss died the other day, you know, of the Shangri-Las. "Leader of the Pack" is what you hear most these days, but I always preferred its predecessor, "Remember (Walking in the Sand)." It was a hit during the summer of '64, it battled the Supremes' first Top 40 crossover hit, "Where Did Our Love Go?," for chart dominance. Both great cuts, at the time I preferred the Shangri-Las tune, although now my preference has flipped. In any event, back then I saw the acts as equals, but they didn't turn out to be. The Shangri-Las stalled out, and the Supremes became icons. But I'll never forget seeing Mary Weiss with her long blond hair and boots on TV. But Mary didn't write the songs, and therefore she rode out her days as an administrator at an architecture firm. You see you've got to earn a living.

So Cindy Bullens is plucked out of obscurity by Elton John, she's living the high life on the Starship, singing on stage and snorting coke all night. But then it ends. She makes an album for UA, which is soon gobbled up by EMI, and the record sinks like a stone, and then where is she?

I've never seen this arc better depicted. These household names, and they were that back then, have hits on the radio, we know who they are, what they look like, and then they descend into obscurity, most times with no cash. They work day jobs. You run into them. You can't square it. What are you doing HERE? We think if you're an icon once, you're an icon forever. But that's not the way it works.

So Cindy gets the rock and roll bug. She goes to see the Stones. She runs away to make it. It's hard to convey to today's youngsters the power of the sound back then, what it meant to us. It wasn't music, it was everything...our culture. The rock stars eclipsed the sports stars we'd been devoted to previously on our transistor radios and we just couldn't get enough of them.

So Cindy ends up in L.A. Well, after going to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. You only hear about the winners. But Cindy got no starring roles and decided to decamp to Los Angeles and work at a gas station until she could make it in music.

And then she met Bob Crewe.

Now let's be clear here, Cindy was pushy. She had chutzpah. She walked through closed doors. And it paid off for her. Would you be able to do the same? Read the book and ask yourself, because that's what it takes to make it.

So, Cindy ends up meeting Bob Crewe and...

Bob Crewe has been almost completely forgotten. But he was a wunderkind. Who wrote and produced the Four Seasons hits with Bob Gaudio and worked with Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels and even made a hit with the otherwise laughable hairdresser Monti Rock III. But it wasn't like today. Those behind the scenes weren't lauded, but those in front of the camera. Today Crewe would be in the league of Max Martin, et al. Back then, especially after the Beatles launched and acts wrote their own material, most were unaware of him.

Crewe made it up as he went along. But he taught Desmond Child to start with a great title, like "You Give Love a Bad Name." The song writes itself thereafter.

So Crewe is infatuated with Cindy who starts working for him and ingesting as many drugs as he does. She sings on the "Grease" soundtrack, is nominated for Grammys, and then scores the gig with Elton, who she tells off at the end, regretting it ever since, even though Elton seems to have forgiven her.

And then she falls in with Crewe's brother Dan, who is also gay. And records are made and fail and then they get married. Which makes no sense, of course, because they're both gay.

But is Cindy gay? She feels she's a boy from her earliest years. And ultimately she transitions into a man and becomes Cidny.

Okay, this is where you tune out, you can't take this. But this is a sincere portrayal of the angst, of the torture of feeling you've been born in the wrong body, that you're the wrong sex. And it's not from some unknown, but Cindy Bullens. I own that UA album (although I think I bought it as a cut-out).

So Cindy finds herself married to a gay guy who wants children. They move back east, and ultimately end up in Westport, Connecticut with two girls. So now Cindy's head is spinning. She's in a sexless marriage with her best friend, she's over thirty and the music world, her passion, has passed her by. But then she tries. And deals with being away from her kids, who don't understand.

But Cindy can't understand. How she's living as a Fairfield County housewife. She used to be a rock and roller. People think she's a guy.

So she ends up recording more music but it fails commercially. She even signs with Danny Goldberg's Artemis. If you're out of the loop, reading the book you'd think her debut for the label was a giant hit, based on the media, the TV and radio and live dates... But believe me, it didn't have huge impact. But it had more commercial impact than everything Cindy did thereafter.

And that first Artemis album is one Cindy cut with her own money, about the death of her young daughter from cancer.

And this is Cindy's new career, connecting with the bereaved, those from Columbine. And more.

And ultimately Cindy throws in with Wendy Waldman and Deborah Holland and they become the Refugees and it's all groovy.

Only it's not. This is not the seventies anymore. You probably don't know who the Refugees are either. They make albums, they play live, but you're not seeing them in the Spotify Top 50. You see as the years went by the game changed, unless you're Elton, a bona fide star, you've either gone straight or gone cottage industry, living off house concerts and merch sales. You might be able to eke out a living, but if you're in it for the fame, you're never going to get there.

And then Cindy transitions, into a trans man.

Okay, there are a plethora of music biographies, rarely written by the star themselves, sometimes, like Linda Ronstadt's, not even revealing the dirt you buy these books for. They're all the same, and almost always unsatisfying.

But not only have you never heard of Cidny Bullens, you certainly don't know her book. But it's a better read than almost all those star bios. But since Cidny is not a star herself, her book was published by the Chicago Review Press, sans the promotion clout of the big outfits, and its impact in society has been minimal. But it's a fascinating read. And it's more than music, more than rock and roll.

Here's someone who was bitten by the bug, made it all the way to the show and then...well, not nothing, but definitely not the something he wanted.

You get into your sixties and seventies and this is who you are, there are no do-overs, and you can only correct course so much, ultimately all you can do is march forward. But you never really change, you're the same person you always were, that's what Cidny realizes when he reads his ancient diaries.

So what we've got here is a person. Who was tortured. On the inside! And could talk to nobody about it. Who felt she didn't fit in, who wasn't even sure who or what she was.

And all we hear is the anti-trans hype.

But I've got a trans nephew.

It's not like these people are happy-go-lucky and change genders on a whim. And even when you feel comfortable in your new body you have to learn a whole new set of societal mores. A woman can coo over a baby in an airport, if a man does this it's creepy.

Now in truth, ultimately everybody is forgotten, it's all plowed under, it's grist for the mill and then there are all new people with similar dreams who follow the same arc.

Cindy is touring with Elton John and then Cidny is training people at the local Y and fulfilling orders in a warehouse. You've got to eat. And you need socialization, to fend off the depression, if nothing else.

And I must admit, I've delineated many of the highlights here. But there's so much more, what Cidny felt, what he is feeling. This is not VH1's "Behind the Music." This is someone laying down their pain so others can feel so not alone and still others can maybe understand.

Rock and roll is a cruel game. And nearly impossible to stay in. This is the story of someone who played and survived. But it wasn't easy.

Like I said, you've probably never heard of "TransElectric," but I'm telling you now you should read it. And it makes me want to see Cidny's one man show. This is my generation. One that dreamt of everything and then tried to live out our dreams and it wasn't always pretty. And we still wonder, we still have questions, how did we end up HERE?

Doesn't matter that you don't know who Cidny Bullens is. He talks about stuff you know, but even more Cidny testifies, does his best to convey and explain his life, and it's been very complicated, and it hasn't been easy.

I don't write about every music book I read. Most don't deserve your time.

But this one does.


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The Death Of Pitchfork

This is not a harbinger of what's to come, this is the last gasp of a dead paradigm.

In other words, record reviews are history.

We needed them. Because there was no way to hear most of the music. We needed guidance before we laid down our cold hard cash. And we got to the point where we trusted certain writers, or at least had the skinny on their viewpoint. And then there was the imprimatur of the publications themselves. "Rolling Stone" had gravitas. As for the magazine sporting that moniker today, it's behind a paywall and is invested in clickbait headlines and they say it's making money, but it's lost all cultural relevance.

Cultural relevance? How do you achieve it?

Via word of mouth.

Which means it's out of control. In other words, the usual suspects, the tastemakers, the gatekeepers, they've lost all power. And on one hand this is fine with the consumer, this has been an evolution since the mushrooming of the internet around the turn of the century. On the other, there's no coherence, no way to make the public aware of great stuff, that they should know about.

This responsibility now lies with the distributors, although they've completely abdicated it. They think it's all about personalization. But people could find the records they wanted to hear in the retail bins, but it was those featured on the endcaps, those that were played in the store, that mattered.

So Spotify, et al, have to promote one track a week. On the homepage. That everyone is exposed to. Maybe have a round robin. One week for Universal, one week for Sony, one week for Warner and one week for independents.

Or maybe it's more than one record. Each of the above four gets to put forth and feature one track a week.

But ideally it would be less. Somewhere between one and three.

And they would be from different genres. This is not like the Top Forty radio of today, all hip-hop and pop. I'm speaking of something more akin to the FM radio of yore, when it was underground and free-form, when it was a cultural meeting place. The records will be featured because people should hear them, need to hear them, not because they will become instant smashes.

So I hear you now, saying you're not interested in most records. Fine, but I know you've got the power of analysis, I know you like to talk about records, I know you like to trash the records you don't like. But when you do this now you're operating in a vacuum, it's just you. But if we were all exposed to the same tracks...

Yes, kind of like a national book club, like Oprah, "Good Morning America," "Read with Jenna." However, it takes much less time to listen to a track than read a book. Not only would the chosen tracks get traction, i.e. listens, we could discuss them amongst ourselves. Worthy left field stuff could blow up.

The dirty little secret is the labels are unable to break new acts. Which are the lifeblood of the music economy. There are almost no bright spots. They keep trying to amplify social media stars to little effect. There needs to be an outside force.

This is not terrestrial radio. More people are going to the homepage of the streaming outlets than are listening to terrestrial radio. If you can find anyone under twenty five who still listens...I can't.

So we need to whittle the chaos down. To comprehensible bites.

Now let's be sure, the labels don't want this, even though they need this. They'll argue over who has more market share. They'll say they've got so many worthy cuts. Maybe Spotify has to pick the track. But Spotify and the labels and the acts must be in cahoots, so that any success can be amplified.

As for Pitchfork... They say there's not enough money in advertising. But if the site were so desirable it could be subscription-based. But it's not that desirable. I prefer Metacritic to Pitchfork anyway. Amazon's book recommendations used to be done by humans. But they found out that the algorithm sold more books. So they fired the human curators. But having said that, there's still a bit of curation left, on the new and noteworthy book level. I'm talking about something like that. However, the spots can't be bought, this can't be advertising.

So Pitchfork started when alternative rock was...an alternative. Now everything is an alternative, nothing is a reaction to anything because there's no context. You don't care about what you don't care about. But having said that, people have a strong desire to find new music, and they can't seem to do this, it's overwhelming.

And forget playlists... That's passive and we're talking active here. We want people to listen and comment, and discuss. Maybe even have a Netflix show once a week or once a month with the featured tracks/acts. This is not personal, but broad-based.

We need to bring the people together. And we do this by pointing them in a certain direction. They're not going to pay for this information. And today it's all about a very few, powerful sites. In music it's Spotify, Amazon and Apple...with Deezer and Tidal and a few others as also-rans. That's a lot of impressions, a lot of screen real estate, all in one place. Believe me, if everybody saw the same track posted on the homepage of any of these sites it would get people to listen.

Then again, it must be conveyed to the public that these tracks are based on their quality, that people need to listen to these acts, that they're just not label priorities.

So some unknown reviewer giving their opinion on an album? Who cares about that. Which is why RottenTomatoes is more powerful than any single critic, it's an average.

But watching an entire movie or series takes a ton of time, most people don't do it. But to listen to a cut? That only takes a few minutes.

Maybe you get to vote, thumbs-up or thumbs-down. And there's a playlist that also stays on the homepage of the tracks with the best rating.

This is not rocket science, this is about thoughts, innovation in a creative business. But today's business is driven more by data than creativity. They've squeezed the soul right out of it. You need some wild thinkers. And the streaming platforms were built by techies, which is the wrong kind of innovation.

I'm talking here about taste, insight, having one's finger on the pulse, knowing it when you hear it. Just like the FM jocks picked their favorite records, we need experts to decide what songs to feature/promote/hype.

But one thing is for sure, record review sites are not coming back, are not going to grow, because word of mouth from a trusted friend is much more powerful. You know where they're coming from. And there's no anointed critic who most people can agree on, they're all faceless.

Music criticism is dead. If it comes back, it will look different.

But rather than try and resuscitate criticism, I'd like to build back the music itself. Think of the acts you found from the Warner Loss Leaders. There's stuff you'd like if you just heard it. But now no one can listen to everything. And too many people promoting this act or that are bought and paid for, and therefore untrustworthy and ignored.

One can argue that the law would prevent collusion amongst the streaming services, choosing the same records. Then again, Springsteen was on the cover of both "Time" and "Newsweek," there can be serendipity.

Then again, most people don't subscribe to multiple services, so it's just what they see on their service of choice.

And instead of printing the manipulated chart numbers, media outlets will print the songs featured this week.

We need to make it easier for the consumer. At the same time we're telling them this music deserves respect, because it's quality work.

We've got to stop lamenting the passage of the past and invest in the future.

There are multiple paths. The above is just one of them.


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Re-Madonna Lawsuit

GREAT post..truer words were never spoken. 

I am backstage caterer and artist/tour hospitality provider....Chase Center, Oracle, etc so I see things up close and personal. It's a BUSINESS with timelines and deliverables. Hard core, for real. 

For instance, if my crew is 5 minutes late on a union coffee break, there may be a fine attached and a "Whole Lotta Whining"  from the locals. I have never been late. 

In every venue dining room, affectionately or sometimes snidely called "Catering" (our food is great), there is a "to the second" run of show posted on all four walls and doors. Almost always, it goes exactly as planned. 

I was lucky enough to make my way into industry late in life so I never knew the old days of chaos and high drama.  Sounds fun. But these days, it is all professionalism and competence.  Don't be late.

Stacy Scott

_________________________________

2 hours late…lawsuit? The last Lauryn Hill concert I promoted she was still in the hotel at that time. After 3 hours I had to make some refunds. But no lawsuit. 

I don't know why I'm laughing, but my whole team still gets a kick out of it.

Tom Gribbin

_________________________________

It comes down to respect. Time is the one thing we will never get back. 

30 minutes late? People will resent, but will forgive if it's a one off. Two or three hours late; it's an insult.  And what about the people staffing the show?   Again, so insulting. 

Audrey Fix Schaefer

_________________________________

It should be noted, when I was in the ' game' and G 'n' R were touring and Mr Rose was late every show the band got together and all agreed, band would be on time so Axle had to pay for the over run, when load out runs over the time allocated, normally 1am it could cost anywhere from 50 to 100 Grand depending if it was Teamsters or local help, this is the reason G 'n' R did the Monster tour with Metalica cause at the end of the G 'n' R tour Axle wanted to spend some of his money only to find out he was pretty broke and probably didn't help the vibe in the camp.

I would think it's pretty much the same today, y7our show goes into overtime you pay the price. 

AS ya do, appreciate the emails

Ta

Neil Watson
Ireland

_________________________________

The worst example of this I've seen in a while was the Lauryn Hill/Fugees Miseducation disaster that came through Vancouver recently. Known for being 'late', Lauryn Hill was so late that the opening 'DJ' had to reassure the audience that Lauryn was "in the building, and would be taking the stage". Not to worry.

Her show was lame. She fought imaginary monitor issues all night to mask her weakened voice and insecurity. I've done enough live sound to know a mask when I see one.

Pras couldn't make it through the border so the 'Fugees' portion was Lauryn and Wyclef. I'm not a huge Wyclef fan but I will say that when he took the stage the show locked up and was 1,000% more professional.

What a letdown. My wife and I were excited to tap into the nostalgia and are huge fans of the Miseducation album, we almost left early.

Cheers,

Mike.

_________________________________

Surprised you didn't bring up the Mother of all abusively late artists, Lauryn Hill. She typically holds her "fans" hostage for 3-4 hours. I have friends that have played with her and quit because of this malignant narcissism. 

What you also didn't mention is that every hour one of these artists are late are an extra hour the crews and musicians don't get to sleep, they still have to show up the same time the next day! Like the crews don't work hard enough….this disgusts me.

And yes, I think Live Nation is also culpable-there should be a penalty in ALL of their contracts that any delays past one hour takes X amount out of the artist's pocket. They are putting the artist over the fans. A fatal mistake that has been repeated through history. Greed kills!

What pisses me off is these slackers make us who respect our fans look bad. Like it's not hard enough being a musician or crew member. 

My dad was a musician and always told me "dress great and show up on time." 

CJ Vanston

_________________________________

Even though you're a music-centric Blog, no conversation about stage tardiness should exclude the Greatest Ever Magician - David Copperfield.

Years of 5 minutes 10 min 15-20 30 minutes late.   Audience chants, etc.  Always multi-show days which had this domino effect, of course, turning the theater, then Arenas.

One day during a 3, even 4 show per day weekend in Germany, I pre-show briefed him on the 6-7 thousand per show audiences to come for the sequential run of daily shows.
"Maybe we can get started 10 minutes or so latest, blah blah."   David was sitting there with Claudia Schiffer and they looked at me blankly, "Why are you telling me this?"

"Well the people arre paying incredibly (new to me) $100++ equivalent ticket prices and I think you should know."    Nothing.

Then he'd go out on stage and just Kill.  He could give a good f*ck.

We parted ways soon thereafter.  One of our many back n forth moments of employment over many decades.

But he is the Best at his Art.

Bob Cayne

_________________________________

You what I love? When you go see Bob Dylan now, if the ticket says Show Time is 7:30...Show Time is 7:30 SHARP. The Show STARTS whether you're in your seat or not. Bob's got a year of other shows stretching out ahead of him, so he's not waiting.  And I think when I went to two shows at the Beacon a couple years ago we were back out on the street by 9pm maybe 9:30. 17 songs.  I was HOME by 10pm and had seen an excellent, professionally presented live rock and roll show by Bob and His Band.  BRILLIANT.  More power to him.  All acts should adopt this concert philosophy.  

Jason Cilo

_________________________________

She pulled that sh*t at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2019. BAM is right near Barclay's, but it's  a 2,000 seat "opera house" as opposed to a basketball/hockey arena.
Tix were pricey, and she came out real late. But, I have to say it was a great show (different than concert); a real (almost avant garde) production. I was never a big fan of her music, but I have to say I dug the performance.
But, I figured she pulled the hours late thing because we were at BAM in hipper than hip Brooklyn (I'm a native pre-hipster Brooklynite). Not cool that this is her M.O. everywhere.
Hey, by the way, your Tony Visconti and John Scher podcasts were mesmerizing!

Keep 'em coming!
Jeff Douglas

_________________________________

Nearly all major venues have show curfew times, dictated by excessive labor costs for overtime, i.e. after 11 PM.  Some venues charge penalties to artists who aren't finished by 11 PM.  Significant penalties.  That can grow minute by minute after 11 PM.

Axl Rose didn't care, at Guns N Roses shows back in the day.  When he toured with AC/DC, Angus called the shots and they went on every night on time. Since then, Axl's gotten better.

Those costs can be enormous.  Most artists don't want to incur those costs.

Toby Mamis

_________________________________

Also in the old days, you could imagine a rock star being late because they were out of control, doing lines, getting over a hangover, in the dressing room having a fivesome, or even still sleeping from the previous night's debauchery. You could be amused by it and wish you were them. 

But now it's more likely their yoga/nutritionist/fitness coach was running late. Or that they were too busy realigning their chakras to float out on stage. 

Cha-cha-cha-cha-changes.

Paul Gigante 

_________________________________

Bands should realize that a half hour is enough time for excitement to build. If the show is at 8 o'clock I arrive in my seat at 7.30 and the lights go down at 8 and preferably the first few notes are played in the dark then boom the stage lights up and off we go. That's the way it should always go. If I have to sit for an hour or two in some cases then my inclination is to rush the stage and throat punch the singer to the point he may never be able to sing again, not that I would ever do that but one can dream.
It seems to be an American thing where they are incapable of starting things on time. I've watched I don't know how many news conferences in the last 4 years and not one, not one has started when they said they would. How fucking hard is that to do?

Greg Stroh

_________________________________

I went to see Sly and the Family Stone... notoriously for being late.
An hour and a half it took...
BTW.. the show was phenomenal.

Jeff Laufer 

_________________________________

Man, you are right, Bob, in saying that concerts are a mature business. I just turned 67, and most of the shows I see now are at festivals which are run like the Swiss train system, and small club shows featuring up-and-coming acts and some nostalgia acts. Generally, they are run on time.  Madonna may think the biggest spotlight still shines on her, but she is a nostalgia act, and people who go to see nostalgia acts are older folks expecting things to be "as advertised". I love my fellow Michigander, Madonna, but she should respect her audience. 

Ross Field

_________________________________

We were just at dinner. I told my wife about your letter. She said… Madonna is on tour? I had no idea.

Mission accomplished.

Marty Winsch

_________________________________

Right On,as  we would say in my day.  I hope one day Madonna pisses off enough people that they are onl wiling to see her concert on  HBO Max

What disrespect on her part…..

Fern Cohen

_________________________________

I'm glad those 2 are suing. You could offer me free tickets to see Madonna and I'd pass. Sure, she had hits back in the day, but she seems like a cartoon trying to be young. I'd rather see Weyes Blood or Laufey at a small venue than Madonna at a stadium.

Turk

_________________________________

I was a roadie in the days when there was only one of me and some of my worse memories are trying to corral band members to get them on stage on time.. I worked for blues and R&B based bands with horn sections and multiple keyboards so there was a lot of band to gather. 

And Jamie Lee is one of the nicest people I've ever known.

Phil Brown

_________________________________

Great piece Bob. I couldn't agree with you more. 

Kyle JF

_________________________________

Bad look for Madonna, and I agree with everything you said until "I applaud these guys for suing." There are better forums to solve this problem - reviews, articles, social media rants. I don't see how a lawsuit helps - what precedence does this set for artists? The only people who win here are the lawyers. Let the fans speak their mind and Madonna can choose to listen or not. 

Todd Olsen

_________________________________

Bitch, she's Madonna. 

She was one hour late in Copenhagen. When I last saw her in Paris, her back was screwed and we ended up waiting in the theatre (boiling) two or three hours. 
It's not raw power, it's a show. So maybe she should have started on time. But to me, that has zero importance afterwards if the show is great. And this one was.

I've been to around 25-50 gigs a year of all sorts since Wings in 1972, I don't mind. If I go to a concert or a play, even a movie, everything else ceases to exist. 
Even when it is my job to be there, even if I've already seen the artist live 30 times, even if don't like the artist - even if afterwards it turns out it was all just hot air.
It's always a purely divine moment of artistry and human interaction*.
In cellars, clubs, arenas, festivals, waiting an extra hour is therefore a bonus, as far I'm concerned.
Sorry, not festivals. I hate to miss another concert on the field just because someone overslept or is too drunk. But that's another story and very rarely happens these days.

I realise gigs is just popcorn, games or streaming for people like this. They may be right, well from their perspective of course they are. But the magic is not in sight there for them and that kind of makes me sad. 
I'm just thankful that I can feel the divinity of a performance. And that my daughters and their friends can. It's made my life so much better, including the waiting.  

So, totally with the lady in question. 
The suers should stick to the twilight of their smartphones. 

Martin Theander
Malmö

* (excluding the non-listening Roger Waters, preaching brutally to his choir while showing it down or throats these days)

_________________________________

Bob, this is kind of old news for Madonna fans. 
Even seven years ago arguably "more in her prime" Abs heyday, she did the same thing; we had our daughter and a friend with us at this special treat for them in San Jose at the Shark Tank in great seats. 

Sure enough the tickets said 8:30 start, but after a strange opening act with a DJ and a very long gap the girls were falling asleep by the 10:30-ish start time that did, like this one, run late into the wee hours.

She's Madonna. Get over it. ;)))

Keep up the great work. 
Cheers,

Matt Weeks

_________________________________

The plaintiffs are right and should get some compensation…. They didn't get the show they paid for.  

Ron Eisenberg

_________________________________

One sentence summed this meshugah mess, "You must respect the audience." 
I have been a fan of Madonna's since she first burst onto the scene. I just finished reading the Madonna biography (over 1,000 pages) and it was a pretty fair review of her life, interspersed with pretty informative historical information surrounding her growth and development as an artist. She is a generally decent human being, so that she makes her fans wait like this is anti-thetical to that kindness and decency. 

I have seen Madonna perform ONCE in my lifetime and swore I would never see her again because, I am a timely person that respects other people's time. The stories about her late appearances onto the stage was enough to turn me off. 

It's a bummer, I know, I have precluded myself from seeing her live, but my time is just as important as Madonna's.

Khila Khani

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I'm a Madonna fan, especially of the old stuff but my interest peaked around the early 90's.  I thought after her last tour (she was two hours late to her 2019 Chicago dates - on a weeknight!) she might do more of her hits the next time.  But I'm surprised more isn't being made about her not bringing a live band with her - relying mostly on tapes instrumentally.  In the NYT review, that didn't come up until around paragraph fifteen.  I'm sorry M - instant dealbreaker for me.

Douglas Trapasso

_________________________________

Sadly as iconic as she is, she needs to run a tighter show. Her audience is a combination of Gen X and Millennials who've paid top dollar to see her which one has to assume that includes money on a babysitter for the night out during the week. 

Waiting two hours to see Madonna, no thanks. 

Gary Marella

_________________________________

Your points are valid Bob, but I feel like you've left out one key element. 

Why should a fan be entitled to sue an artist for going on late? You can leave. Complain to the promoter that they promoted a said time and you need to get home, blah blah… If you aren't too drunk to talk to someone in charge, and you are savvy enough to find a lawyer to take your frivolous case, I'm sure you're smart enough to get a refund. And if you lose money on babysitters or whatever else, that's a cost of playing the game. I bought two sets of tickets to the latest Eagles shows at the Forum - despite sounding amazing, the show was boring and uninspired. So much so, I sold my eighth row tickets for the second show at a loss rather than sit through it again. I'm not suing the Eagles because I wished their show was better. I just value my time, and I'd rather take the financial hit than go again. If Madonna went onstage too late, go home. I don't think she chained everyone to their seats.

Hate the artist, bitch online, be a keyboard warrior for how the artist epitomizes everything wrong with the world and ruined your life. But a lawsuit? You went on late and I'm tired at work, so I'm suing you… Come on. Grow a set. We live in a lawsuit happy world, and it's out of control. Now that I know I can sue an artist for going on late, can I sue them for making an album I paid for and don't like? When some lascivious story comes out and I find out fifteen years later that said artist (allegedly) isn't the person I thought they were/are, can I sue them for making me like them under false pretenses? 

When I show up on time for a doctor's appointment, can I sue the doctor if they see me late? Even better, can I sue the person that showed up late for their doctor's appointment, causing the doctor to run late and making my appointment late, thus throwing the rest of my day off?

Everything you said is true, but where do we draw the line. This lawsuit is absurd. 

PAUL GARGANO

_________________________________

I would ave loved to see her again. Madonna at her best is the epitome of pop. Her music and show sparkle, titillate and excite. I grew up with her music and really love some of it. 
But-
Cut it out. Concerts are more expensive than ever and frankly that ticket is kind of a contract. If I'm paying all that money to see a show at 8:30 on Monday and you start at 10:15 (this happened in Boston), you've broken the contract. 
I heard about her late starts and saw those prices and easily decided that my memories of her past shows would do. And this is it for me lately. I'd love to See Sarah MacLachlan too - but her tickets are fetching ridiculous prices at a medium sized outdoor venue. Nope.
My days of seeing multiple shows of the same artist are over. I'm not paying the crazy prices and I'm not staying out till 1a to get my moneys worth. 

Marc McDonald 

_________________________________

- to illustrate your Madonna reality check and difference between rock n roll and show business then and now, here's one you may appreciate. 

It was New York. Summer of 1971. I was 16 and living in Nassau County. A friend came by with some weed. In a teenage haze, with 'no particular place to go' we thought to ride over to Forest Hills Stadium in the afternoon and sniff out The Who show scheduled for that evening. 
We arrived 'pre' sound check and walked right up to the stage. With nobody but the stage crews around, we made our way to the steps that led to the stage. Patti Labelle's piano tech was tuning the piano and we walked up looking out over the stadium grounds. 16 years old and we couldn't believe our luck! Chip Monck was testing the monitor board and treated us like we belonged there?? 

3 hours later, we're still hanging by the stage steps. Patti Labelle had finished her set 45 minutes ago, the house lights dimmed, and to my left I noticed a group of guys laughing and talking while a flashlight led the way walking toward us.......

THE WHO TOOK THE STAGE! We watched the show like church mice next to Chip Monck....The ROCK N ROLL GODS WERE WITH US!...but my friend said it was the smoke.

Steve Chrismar

_________________________________

This is what we get. Having a computer with 24/7 news and info at our fingertips has its pros and cons. Nothing makes news and stays relevant anymore. We just don't have the BANDWIDTH for it. The one person who's been in the news for the last 8 years consistently is Trump. And it's because he was famous already and became more so by being president. But music isn't what it used to be. I could find you 300 Taylor Swifts in Nashville alone right now. Can you find me another LeBron James? 

Just Danny Jay 

_________________________________

I read your piece on the Madonna lawsuit.

I was, as always, impressed with your insight.

However, there was one sentence that caught my eye.

You say, " It's not rock and roll anymore, it's show business."

With the greatest of respect, Bob, it was always show business.

From Elvis to Dylan to the Stones to Bruce, it was always show business!

With best wishes,

Terry Ellis


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